The Injury Alleviation
by beeprimo
Summary: When an injury has stricken Amy, Sheldon will scour through the night to bring her some relief. My take on what happened after 9x11. Shamy one-shot.


**The Injury Alleviation**

* * *

"_Ahh, just the right there…"_ she moaned pleasurably. Why does this have to be so good?! That's right, the feeling was beyond words. She should've done it years ago.

Amy felt the warm, unscented liquid envelope her raw body, aiding her muscles and joints. The warmth of it brought relaxation to her–both physically and emotionally. This was what she needed after two consecutive strenuous activities which led to her body being sore.

_Sore…_ that seemed to be an overstatement. She's a bit aching. Just a little bit. But not too severe that it might cripple her. She can move her torso, rotate her joints normally, make use of her limbs. She even lowered herself down the bathtub without injuring herself any further.

But if anyone would ever see her walk, jump, run, or do any activity that involves her legs to be in constant motion, they'd be stunned with how limited her legs work as of the moment

She'd be blaming the man on her bed, snoozing, but Sheldon does not deserve any loathing. What he deserved was gratitude, affection, and honor, more than anything. He was a giver–a generous one. However, now that she can think about it, Sheldon made her feel all those feelings without asking anything in return.

It was 3:30 in the morning, the morning after her birthday. So majestic and wonderful, she couldn't think if the words she used was enough. _Was it enough to dignify the man she shared this with? The act of sharing one's body with another. The man who is her never-ending constant._

And here she was, soaking her body in a warm bath to alleviate the discomfort she was experiencing.

He said it was his birthday gift for her. She was more than accepting of the gift that they both made it happen twice. Sheldon was sweet and gentle and perceptive and respectful, that Amy was shocked that he could be one all at the same time.

Sheldon arrived at her apartment around 6 pm—clean-cut and well-dressed—with a bouquet of red roses in hand. He said he brought some balloons but it flew away, and if they pick a restaurant East of them, they might even find it anyway. Nervous, Amy suggested they do presents first, considering that she knew about his present.

At first, Sheldon was hesitant about giving her her present. He does not know if Amy would be willing to. He does not want to force himself to Amy just to satisfy what he's feeling inside. He'll be willing to forego it as soon as the words fall off her mouth.

He wanted verbal consent; she gave it to him. He preferred to have a written contract; she was more than eager not to have one. His heart started pounding louder with the rejection of the contract. But it tempered when he started to feel Amy's love through her kisses. Either way, her consent echoed through his heart and mind, relieving his worries of ungentlemanliness.

The first one sort of spearheaded their newfound intimacy. There were explorations of the skin, the indulgence of the body, translation of their feelings. But it was a timid, uncoordinated dance, not wanting to violate any unspoken pleas of both parties.

They were finished just past 7 pm: both stomachs rumbling from starvation, yet both hearts pleased from satisfaction. After a brief shower—of course, they had separate ones—Sheldon ordered pizza and spent the next two hours discussing the new Stars Wars film, which Sheldon purposely ditch to be with Amy, and how Amy kept him from not looking at spoilers on his phone and diverting the topic.

Sheldon was supposed to go home at 10 pm, but he didn't push through because of Amy. She was not insisting him to stay the night, not verbally, per se, but she had a look on her that drew him to stay. He couldn't just leave her there on her special night, so he decided what any normal man would do.

It has been planned—way before they had a short bout of being broken up—that Sheldon would be leaving a night pack on her place. Since Amy has left tons of them in his apartment, it would be logical to do the same.

When they finally uncovered their pattern during the second time, he was still the same, but at the same time, he was driven and determined and focused at their dalliance. She couldn't say anything bad about how he's making her feel things. Amy didn't know if it was appropriate, but the only word that came to mind, when Sheldon pounded her to the bed that it might leave an indentation, was '_savage'_. Just pure carnal savagery.

And, no doubt, she was a fan of it.

In the end, they were both indulged in each other's body that separation was a lost cause and Sheldon had to stay the night.

Her relaxation was interrupted when faint movements were heard from her bedroom. She disregarded it and continued her contemplation.

She then heard a confused call from the outside, "Amy?"

"In here!" she replied but no one answered. _Weird._

She doesn't believe in ghosts. Probably just a whoosh of the curtain that came out as her name. It's already past 3:30, but it didn't bother her when other people dubbed it as the 'witching hour'; she just wanted a relaxing bath.

She flinched when another call came out, but now much clearer and lucid. "Amy?"

"Sheldon?" she asked, confused. _Is that really Sheldon or is it someone pretending to be Sheldon. _Chills started crawling on her skin, the hair on her neck rose in terror.

"Are you in there?" he asked softly, touching his ear on the door. He knew it was a stupid question; he just heard Amy's voice. Why would she be in there?

"Yes," she promptly replied before continuing, "The door's open!"

Amy breathed in relief when a disheveled Sheldon entered the door. He was wearing his green plaid pajamas, slightly askew to the right, making his undershirt visible. The marks on his cheek manifested that he did enjoy his sleep before it was cut off.

"What are you doing in the bathtub?" He squinted his eyes as the light hit his face. It was only dimmed, for Amy to enjoy her bath, but Sheldon still hasn't adjusted from Amy's pitch dark room.

Amy peered up. "Just cleaning myself up," he explained as her body slowly drifted down, her chin touching the surface of the water.

Sheldon furrowed his forehead. "I don't see any bubbles," he insinuated. He looked at her very closely. His cheeks heat up as took a peek at Amy's naked body. It wasn't explicit or whatsoever; the image was distorted, he can barely even make a picture of it. But what made him flustered was the fact that he knew Amy was naked.

Images of her flashed in his mind. Of their earlier dalliances, their brief make-out sessions. His body temperature rose a point higher than normal, proving that, indeed, he was a sexual man.

"Uh… I'm not using any soap," Amy groaned, her eyes still closed. Sheldon was thankful she wasn't looking at him or she might see how aroused he was at that moment.

"We just took a shower," Sheldon cocked his head in confusion. The arousal slowly coming off of his mind when Amy said that odd reply.

After their second time, they took a shower together. It was tame and very innocent. Sheldon went on rambling about the Star Wars franchise. Amy thought it was just a way for him to not be left out by his friends as they watched the new movie. She didn't mind because Sheldon listened to her shower stories too. He even hummed in the shower as he mindlessly washed his body. For Amy, it was silly as Sheldon swayed to the Star Wars theme song.

"I know," Amy replied groggily.

"But aren't you cleaning yourself too much?" he asked. Of course, he commended Amy's attention to cleanliness, but it had only been four hours since their last bath, and he couldn't fathom why she's eager to remove dead skin cells again.

"It won't hurt, Sheldon," she shot back softly. "Just let it slip," she pleaded as she gazed up at him.

"Okay then. When are you gonna be done? I need to pee," he beseeched. He started tiptoeing on his position and clutched his groin.

She giggled ever so slightly. "You can pee now, I won't look," she reassured as she turned her head away from Sheldon and on the wall.

"Alright… don't look, okay."

Amy heard a rustling cloth, hitting the skin. And then a trickling noise as it hit the surface of the water. She didn't know if it was a figment of her imagination but she was pretty sure that Sheldon was mumbling numbers as he peed. A flush followed by the turning on of the faucet.

"I didn't look," she proudly announced. She turned her head back to Sheldon as he thoroughly washed his hands.

"You proved your promise. Thank you," he replied. He flashed her a genuine smile but quickly diminished when a specific thought crossed his mind.

"Are you certain that you're okay?" he asked with all concern. He was responded by nothing. Amy tilted her head to the left as her eyes were shut closed and her mouth slightly agape. "Amy," Sheldon whispered.

He closed the toilet seat cover and perched at the very edge. Amy didn't budge at the sound Sheldon made as he sat. Instead, Amy let out a minuscule snore that left Sheldon amused. He brought his hand to her and prodded at Amy's bare shoulder, in hopes of waking her up.

She roused in a shock, water droplets splashing from end to end. "Hmm… huh? Sorry, I dozed off a little," she groaned lightly.

Amy brought her body up, overlooking the fact that half of her breasts were visible to Sheldon. His eyes bulged out as Amy straightened her back to stretch, body breaking the water's surface tension. Gulping real hard, he averted his eyes downwards to the tiled floor.

Before he could do anything impudent to his girlfriend, he immediately inquired. "Are you okay?"

Amy slid back down to her initial position before replying, "A little pain."

Sheldon noticed that Amy winced ever so slightly as she shuffled her legs underwater and even tried to lift one leg up but failed.

"Drat!" he cursed. He now then realized why Amy was acting this strange. "I should have been gentler. I'm so sorry," he apologized genuinely, moving closer to Amy.

"Nothing to apologize Sheldon. This is nothing." Amy reached for his hand and gave it a little pat. For Sheldon, it was a reassurance coming from Amy. But he didn't know if it really reassured him in the making; Amy seemed to be struggling with her pain that he would consider it as nothing

"On a scale of one to ten, ten being burned alive and one being a tiny puncture on the skin, where would you associate your pain?"

"Maybe six… I don't know, Sheldon."

"Six?! Being bitten by a fire ant?! Amy that doesn't sound good at all!" he hysterically announced, running his fingers through his hair in regret. Sheldon started pacing around the bathroom. He walked in circles with his hand on his chin, trying to figure out what to do.

"I'm fine, Sheldon," Amy chided softly. She sighed at his apprehension, closing her eyes to return to her relaxing bath and away from his dizzying movements.

"Are your genitals in pain?" he asked, straightforward. No fuss nor filter. Sheldon needed to know. He didn't second guess. Amy must've been suffering for a few hours and was just afraid to tell him.

Her eyes widen. She sighed, "Yes…" Amy was flustered. She resumed closing her eyes and disregarding the embarrassment she felt just talking this intimately.

"What kind of pain?" He stopped moving. Sheldon stood still, leering at her in anticipation. "Tell me," he insisted.

"It's definitely not sharp, straight-forward pain. More like dull… It felt like bruising of some sorts. It's hard to move my legs without feeling something heavy," she explained, trying to sound and look fine to assuage Sheldon's fears.

"Amy," he chided. Sheldon sighed and sat back down to the seat cover. "I'm so sorry," he whispered as he caressed Amy's hair.

"It's fine, Sheldon. Don't worry about it, okay?" she dismissed, letting his touch fall off her hair.

Amy worried at Sheldon more than herself. He tends to blame himself even though he's not to blame. She noticed him acting like that towards her, and she's quite amused at his behavior.

"What do you need? I'll get anything for you," Sheldon vowed, determination in his voice.

In fact, he would be willing to do it for Amy. And for Amy alone. It seemed like this was his karma for being ungentlemanly that he was. What better way to redeem himself to what he had brought upon her?

Amy hesitated for a second. Sheldon was a man of his words; he doesn't back down whenever he's declared his proposition. He's rigid and unyielding and obstinate. Not one thing could cease his willpower.

Amy sighed in surrender. "I ran out of Epsom salt…" she muttered under her breath.

Maybe Sheldon wouldn't be able to hear it. He wouldn't be able to act upon it, not especially at this hour. She thought it would be a win-win situation for both of them.

"Magnesium sulfate. Got it." He clicked his tongue as he stood up, ready to scour Glendale for that salt.

"My Nana always ran a bath salt whenever I have body aches," Amy further explained, pouting her lips in effect.

He cocked his head. "You believe in those pseudosciences?"

"Well, you, yourself, believe in the wonders of Vaporub," Amy jabbed, smirking at how brilliant that response was.

It was true; both of them were caught in their own webs.

"Ah, the classic touché." He laughed at their predicament.

Sheldon turned on the faucet once again and wet his face. He began washing his face, similar to every morning routine he had formulated and perfected throughout the years.

Confused, Amy was alerted at what he was doing. "You're really going out to buy some?"

"Yes, I saw a Rite Aid near Glendale Avenue. They might have some," he answered as water splashed in his face.

"It's a half a mile walk from here to there, Sheldon. And it's barely 4 AM,"

"I like walks. Not at the break of dawn, of course. Do you still have the pepper sprays I bought for you?" he asked through the cloth he wiped his wet face with.

"Yes. It's right there in my medicine cabinet."

"I might need to carry some of those," Sheldon murmured as the creak of the cabinet was heard through the room. _Better safe than sorry, _he thought, rummaging through the supplies.

"Be careful, okay?! You must be home in thirty minutes!" Amy replied in conviction.

"I will, I will."

* * *

He returned rather exhausted from all that walking. He should have done much better when he was learning how to drive. Look at him now: legs weak and head damp from all the moisture in the air. He thought it was a bad idea to walk at this hour, especially not in December. But Amy needed him.

It was not forced or whatsoever. It was out of his goodwill to help her. It was he who inflicted this to Amy in the first place.

Sheldon pulled out Amy's spare key from his pocket. With two bags in one hand, he pushed through the apartment door and noticed the lights were still off, except for the hallway light which he powered on when he left.

_Is Amy still in the bath?_ The alarming thought crossed his mind. Amy might've been still soaked in the bathtub! What if she accidentally snoozed and didn't notice that she was still in the tub?!

With shaky gait, he rushed into Amy's bedroom and was relieved to see her, peacefully curled up into her bed. She was in a fetal position across the bed, against their normal sleeping positions. She was wrapped up in her white, fluffy bathrobe.

_Poor, Amy._ He worried that she what he did to her took a strain on her body. That Amy was just pretending that she was fine but, for all he knew, she was not.

Sheldon lightly dropped the bags on her nightstand. He took a seat near her feet, and when that didn't stir her from her slumber, he curled next to her.

"Amy…" Sheldon called out softly. When she didn't respond, he gave her shoulder a featherlike caress and gave her a shake. "Amy…"

"Huh? What is happening?" Amy pushed herself up the mattress. She had a confused albeit lethargic look on her face.

Sheldon followed her and pushed himself up. He slumped beside Amy before saying, "I'm sorry it took me so long."

"What time is it?" Amy asked as she watched Sheldon stood up from the bed and walked around the room and to the nightstand.

"It's almost five in the morning," he answered abruptly.

"Oh, it's okay…" Amy immediately let it pass and watched as Sheldon stopped at the other side of the bed.

He cocked his head to the right. "You're not mad that I didn't come back within the given thirty-minute timeframe?"

"No, I'm not. I lost track of time." Her tone was genuine. That's what Sheldon adored in her. She was a perfect human being: a mixture of logic and compassion. He didn't know you could have both.

"It seems like it," he insinuated, flashing her a grin. Remembering what he intended to do at the nightstand, he grabbed the bag that he's supposed to give her. "Anyway, I bought your Epsom salt."

"What else is in there?" Amy asked. Sheldon nudged it to her and let her see for herself.

"A box of condoms and a bottle of water-based lubricant," he answered as Amy peeked inside.

"Huh? W-Why did you buy those?" Amy was clearly flustered by Sheldon's scandalous buys.

"The condom is for prophylactic and the lubricant is for… well… for lubricating," he explained innocently.

"I know how it works," Amy whispered shyly. She looked up to Sheldon and sought his eyes. There was no malice in it, just pure Sheldon, trying his best to give her comfort.

Sheldon noticed that it deemed Amy quiet. He took action right away. "So I wouldn't have to worry about failing to bring protection. It'll stay here for you to keep."

He continued, "And I've read that the lubricant will aid to the pain felt after intercourse. Even though, intercourse is not expected to happen in a few hours… or days." Things have reversed and now it was him who turned crimson. Not from his obvious actions to preparedness but from the rarity of this talk with Amy.

He guessed that it as just an initial reaction. He knew in himself that everything will fall right into place and that everything they do together onwards will be effortless as long as he doesn't shut Amy out.

Before the silence break into their sanity, Sheldon decided to talk first.

"Come on, let's have some breakfast. I brought you breakfast," he suggested as he grabbed another bag from the nightstand and lent a hand for Amy to take.

"IHOP?" she asked, chuckling ever so slightly.

"They were open," Sheldon defended with certainty, before confessing, "And I am starving, hence the impulsive action to get what I have yearned for."

"What did you bring me?" Amy stood in front of him and tried to look at the contents of the bag.

"Some blueberry pancakes and hash browns," he answered as he opened the bag and let the smell of breakfast emanate through the room. "But I ate one of your hash browns on the walk home," he admitted with guilt.

"It's alright," she assuaged, but not before releasing a stern, somber statement, "You owe me, Sheldon."

Sheldon was gobsmacked at her response. Drat! He shouldn't have eaten that hash brown! Now, he's beholden to Amy!

Before he could panic and cry, Amy held his cheeks and her lips landed on his', taking seconds and a few nibbles before she pulled away. "But I owe you, too… so we're even." She grinned, gave his cheek a light pat, and sashayed outside like nothing happened, leaving Sheldon blown away and bewildered.

* * *

**I'll be posting the sequel to The Covenant Observation in the last week of September! Thanks for reading**


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